Party with Elvira in The Pinball Arcade Tomorrow

Happy Halloween week guys and gals – we’ve got a special treat for you all! In our on-going quest to re-create as many of the best pinball tables of all time, we were able to get the licenses needed from Bally and the Mistress of the Dark herself, Elvira! This means Elvira and the Party Monsters will be released in Table Pack 6 tomorrow, and Scared Stiff will be released before too long in Table Pack 7.

Elvira has been super cool to work with. She invited us to part of her Macabre Museum at Comikaze Expo last month. We got to show off the Party Monsters table right along with a real machine. Some of the guys here on the pinball team got to meet her, and she even came over and played our game for a while. She’s actually pretty good at pinball!

When they get a hold of the two Elvira tables, they might have to adjust their list.

So… check out Table Pack 6 when it’s released on PSN for PS3 and PS Vita tomorrow. It’s a great table. I find that the key is to earn an Extra Ball as soon as you can, and earn another one when you lose a ball – you always want to keep that Party Again light lit up. Then get multi-ball and start racking up the Jackpots by hitting the ramp shots.

In addition to Elvira and the Party Monsters, Table Pack 6 also includes No Good Gofers which has been re-tuned and is also a blast to play. As always, the purchase is available on PSN as a Cross Buy, so you’ll just need to buy it once to own it on PS3 and PS Vita.

A huge thank you to Elvira for being a part of our pinball game, and also to Sid and the guys on PlayStation Blogcast for all of their support.

Comments

The updates for PS3 and Vita will enable both Table Packs 5 and 6. Table Pack 6 will be available for sure in the store. We’re still waiting to hear from the PSN team whether Table Pack 5 will be available this week or next week.

Hey Bobby, I know you folks at Farsight are working hard to bring pinball to the masses, and it’s a great product with awesome potential. My one concern is that the Vita version in particular has some persistent bugs (more details at http://pinballarcadefans.com/forum.php). Is there progress being made in addressing these issues? Again, you have an awesome product, and I know you guys are working hard, but I feel this is an issue that needs to be addressed. Thank you very much.

The best way to report bugs to us is by emailing them directly to us: support@farsightstudios.com or by posting them on pinballarcadefans.com. Either way, they get added to our bug database and reviewed by our production staff. We have already fixed many issues reported. With TZ ahead of schedule, we are planning to make a focused pass through all of the known issues this month. TZ backers can expect an update very soon on kickstarter.

any chance of ever getting something like the movie-licensed tables…?? Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Terminator — these all come to mind, and were particular favorites of mine back in the day… while i buy each and every table pack you guys come out with, i’d love to see some of my favorites in there someday…

@ Nonslaught7 , just for clarification , the release tommorow is NOT Scared Stiff, but the earlier Elvira table , Elvira and the Party Monsters , it’s still good as Scared Stiff is coming next month with Big Shot , a pool table themed Pinball table.

Elvira also includes the caddyshack themed table , No Good Gofers , which like Funhouse features animatronic toys that taunt you while you play it. As for DLC 5 , FarSight wanted to make good a promise to release a Elvira table in time for Halloween , and put DLC pack 6 ahead of the release schedule .

PS Vita owners should check the Pinball Arcade game for the new update added last night , it enables you to get the next two DLC packs 5&6 .

The table content has to exist in the build or patch in order for us to allow demos. If we included all of the table resources we would be over 1 gig for each title update at this point. We figured that huge updates and possibly storing unused data on your hard drive weren’t worth the ability to offer demos.

Hey been loving the game so far. Probably my most played game for the past few months. I know it is slightly off topic but do you have any plans to improve Black Knight. I was REALLY looking forward to that one and it seems like quite a mess. The table looks faded and there are black smudges over the right magna save area so you cant see the art at all, other areas too. You can’t read the double or triple score light. Top left flipper is harder to see than it should be, and seems to be at a bit of a odd angle.
I have been pretty pleased with all the tables so far … but that one just seems like someone else made it.
That said I am looking forward to buying the tables tomorrow.

We’ll look into improving the art. The flipper angles off the top right flipper are a bit off – you’re right. This is due to a global problem on all flippers that more vertically positioned. We plan to have this improved before releasing TZ.

Is there any chance the graphics for Table Pack #4 will be improved? The menu screen for Black Knight looks horrible, all pixellated. Playing the table there is a huge black line going down the center of the table, like where two textures go together, but off by a bit.

@ Tsunami , have you tried The Pinball Arcade demo yet? you get to try all 4 core tables for a few minutes or when your score hits a certain point.

@Bobby King thanks for getting us Elvira for Halloween , looking forward to NGG , I know you cant give out release dates due to the kind of flak fans give you, but Twilight Zone Pinball in the next few months?

Also is the PRO version of the Tales of the Arabian Nights going to be across the board on all versions?

So because of TPA, I literally have not played any other game on my PS3 since its release. FarSight has said in various videos that the intent was to allow people to play these historic machines because they’re not exactly common place anymore. My question is, what are you guys gonna do with all the machines you now own? Cause I can think of nothing cooler (and because I’m a SoCal local) than if you opened up an official ‘The Pinball Arcade’ arcade up there in Big Bear! I’m just sayin’.

As for the game proper, are there any intentions of doing something with what I’d call ‘live scoring’? What I mean by that is, in game while playing a table getting notifications of someone having just beat your score, or letting you know you just passed a friends score. There’s a mild sense of competition thanks to the leader boards, but this would make me sweat crazy good bullets in-game to know I was crushing others!

Anyways, awesome game. Can’t wait for what future tables are yet to come, its like xmas every month waiting to hear new table announcements.

Your Live Scoring idea is similar to features we have planned once we get online head-to-head implemented.

We are planning to have a regular tournament up in Big Bear starting next year that combines playing the real tables and playing the Pinball Arcade versions of the tables. Maybe we’ll open up an arcade someday – but I think most of the guys here prefer having them all in our office in Free Play mode, just sayin’. :)

@15 As someone who has all the tables for Zen and Pinball Arcade as they come out on PSN, I can say that they’re BOTH a real treat for pinball fans. They each have their pros and cons that people may argue over forever, but I love to go back and forth while playing and have a blast doing so. There is definitely always room for more tables!

TPA had some quirks starting out, but they’ve been working hard to get them ironed out and their dedication shows. I think the biggest complaint I see online about TPA when comparing to Zen is the physics. The ball on Zen seems “heavier,” but the tables on Zen are also closer. TPA tables are set farther back a bit and the ball is smaller, so imo, that would make it lighter than Zen. I think it’s about right for the size and just requires a mental adjustment when going back and forth.

I love that nostalgic feel with TPA, being able to play all the tables that I was unable to as a kid because I was one those poor kids that had to stand aside and watch. Now I can play all night! And of course, Zen allows me to play tables that are more fantastical, so when you have both games, you have the best of both worlds!

Thanks Bobby. Whirlwind was my first machine and I bought it after playing it in PHOF. Just wanted to make sure it was definitely on the way. F-14 is probably my favorite Steve Ritchie pin along with The Getaway (don’t own that one… yet), and I think you guys really need to add more of his games to the collection.

Speaking of Steve Richie tables, I was just playing a quick game of our real Firepower while my lunch was heating up. The ball got stuck in the left outlane. I tried calling an attendant, but no one came. That’s OK, though – he’s finishing up a kickstarter update video for TZ. My favorite Richie table is probably T2 and then STTNG.

Speaking of Steve Richie tables, I was just playing a quick game of our real Firepower while my lunch was heating up. The ball got stuck in the left outlane. I tried calling an attendant, but no one came. That’s OK, though – he’s finishing up a kickstarter update video for TZ. My favorite Richie table is probably T2 and then STTNG.

The more tables you mention, the more I’m looking forward to the future of the game. T2 seems like it would be a tough license, especially with a big star like Arnold featured so prominently on the machine.

Bobby, how you guys get any work done over there with all those tables just sitting there…that’s the real achievement! And I couldn’t be more excited about a future live tourney up there in Big Bear. Hopefully announcements will be made on the forum so us locals can participate?

Got another question for you. The physics have obviously been getting better and better with each new release (CFTBL in particular feels amazing). Are you guys still satisfied with the physics in the early releases of tables, or are you planning on going back and implementing what is being applied now? Or maybe that is something that is being worked on at the same time as some of the bug updates to various tables? Medieval Madness with Creature’s physics would be mind boggling insane fun. Cause then I might get a decent score!

One last thing. There’s been discussions on the fan forum about t-shirts (like the one worn at the Elvira booth). People want ’em, are thinking of making their own, but would rather have official swag. Any thoughts?

The answer is YES, if something is wrong or clearly needs adjusting – we will.

Glad to hear you like how CFTBL is tuned, because it’s one of my favorite real tables and I heard a couple complaints about it’s physics in our game lately. What specifically do you find wrong (or needing improvement) on Medieval? I know that the return to the right in-lane was missing collision that would stop and drop the ball as oppose to letting it speed on past.

We’ll be revealing the t-shirts that the TZ backers get soon. After that (and a backer t-shirt for TNG), I’m sure more official swag is possible. T-shirt, hats, shoes, cologne, who knows… :)

I agree, TPA would look beautiful in STEREOSCOPIC 3D!!
Please consider this. This is the only reason I currently play more of Zen 2, but if Farsight can add 3D support I will DELETE my Zen and be done with it. :)

As a Pinball fan for over 25 years, TPA is my dream come true and I thank you guys for your incredible dedication to keeping these tables alive and playable. I was wondering if you plan on doing any more of the Stern tables from the last 14 years. Roller Coaster Tycoon was one of my favorites. and does not have a expensive license attached to it. Thanks again for the incredible game and info you and your team give us.

Bobby,
Thanks again for your honesty and for answering your fans questions. Farsight is obviously a very dedicated developer and I’m always happy to support you guys with purchasing every table you release.

That being said, is there any chance you guys could add a way for us to play music in the background (either via XMB or in game)? I love games that allow us to listen to our own music in the background.

It’s especially useful for older EM tables where the sounds are dings, bleeps, and buzzes. (Not that I don’t love that stuff!) :)

In addition, there are free MP3 tracks on the net called “Arcade Ambience” which is basically the sounds you would hear if you were in an arcade in the 80’s or 90’s . All I can say is playing the pinball tables with this playing in the background just feels “right”.

My main complaint with MM is the bounce on the flippers. With Creature, its a short bounce and then the ball is caught, whereas MM it bounces a few times before settling. I’d also point out that if the ball is fairly close to the catapult target, it will often get sucked right through the wall and into the shot! Not that I mind ;) I just know a lot of people feel, at least with the PS3 releases, that the best physics tables are FH, BoP, and CFTBL. I guess it all comes down really to how the ball acts around the flippers, and I know you guys are putting a lot of effort into getting that just right. Even a table like MB, which to me has a very similar layout to MM, I have much better ball control and aim then I do with MM. When I play a round on MB and then switch to MM, its really pronounced the difference.

So yeah, revise what I said about physics in general and instead apply it to what is going on in the flipper area!

Is there any chance of getting a PRO version of scared stiff? That is one of my all time favorite tables, but the risque audio is a big part of its charm. Or would the ability to turn family mode off force the entire pinball arcade to get a higher rating than it is at now?

In regards to this title, for such a collaberation, this game definitely brings back the true ‘retro-feel’ and is highly recommended for all! Thank you and the development team, for letting all of us re-live such memories.

Now, not to bombard you with another possible request for a table but one that I remember was a sports-themed table called ‘Bally’s World Cup Soccer 1994’. I must of easily spent over $100 US on this alone in a two week time-frame, just to beat the high score! Seeing that there’s no sport-themed table yet released in The Pinball Arcade video game, is there a slight chance that this one may get a closer nudge in the doorway?

Either way, The Pinball Arcade video game is something I’ve longed for all my expanding life!
Thanks again ;)

Seem to be getting some glitches lately. Have had the game failing to load and saying it is corrupted. Lost all my table achievements and had to re-do them. Also when I play two player and get to put my name in the second played fails to load all buttons on screen so I cant enter my name. Where can I go to log these faults?